Hawthorn Woods ordered to pay $5.3 million to developer
A five-year court action involving a 62-acre property in Hawthorn Woods has ended with a $5.3 million judgment against the village.
In a 21-page decision, Lake County Associate Judge Luis A. Berrones also said the village must pay legal fees incurred by PML Development LLC, which one of its attorneys said could be in the $2 million range.
Village officials said they were disappointed by the ruling and would appeal, but they declined to discuss particulars as it is a pending legal matter.
The dispute involves property bordered by Fairfield Road to the west, Midlothian Road on the east, Kruger Road on the south and the Legend Knoll subdivision on the north.
Wheeling-based PML was formed to develop the property in Hawthorn Woods, and the company and village entered into a development agreement in 2012.
Berrones in his ruling described the agreement as being at times "vague or incomplete" as to what each party was required to do and that it did not create a "cooperative business relationship" between the parties.
PML lawyers argued that the village delayed the project in order to incorporate details of a proposed municipal complex that weren't negotiated in the initial agreement.
The company sued the village in 2015 for breach of contract. Among other things, the company contended that the village refused to approve a grading permit on a timely basis because the municipal campus plan for the property had not been finalized and that it used stop-work orders to force concessions and plan changes.
The village made a counterclaim of breach of contract, saying, among other things, the company failed to grade and compact the property in accordance with design criteria for a municipal campus.
Grading was completed in December 2018. All has been quiet at the site since, although the comings and goings of trucks, earth moving, and other work and noise had riled some neighbors for years.
"The village was overreaching," said Joseph Cohen, a partner with Chicago-based law firm Fox Rothschild LLP, which represented PML. "They were using their police powers to do things that were outside of the agreement."
The village "continuously" changed the concepts for a municipal campus and refused to issue a permit until PML revised grading plans to accommodate "ever changing" designs, the firm argued.
Berrones found that additional costs relating to site preparation, topsoil and clay work because of the expiration of the grading permit tallied nearly $4.9 million.
Costs from multiple revisions to comply with village demands added $183,293, he found, and damages totaled nearly $5.35 million in the end. PML had sought about $7.3 million in damages plus attorney's fees.
In a statement, Pam Newton, chief operating officer, said the village will appeal the judgment and remains "steadfast in its commitment to uphold mandated environmental standards." She declined to elaborate.